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First-Year Foundation Seminars

Five students sitting inside Woodsworth College looking at a laptop together and smiling

Woodsworth College's First-Year Foundation Seminars are open only to newly-admitted, Faculty of Arts & Science students (students who have completed 3.5 credits or less). They are half-credit courses that focus on discussion of issues, questions and controversies surrounding a particular discipline (or several disciplines), taught in a small-group setting that encourages participation and engagement with faculty and fellow students. FYF seminars are as rigorous and demanding as any other first-year course, but with a special focus on preparing students for success by developing their critical thinking, research, writing, and oral presentation skills. With a maximum enrolment of 30 students each, they are an ideal way to have an enjoyable and challenging small-class experience in your first year.

First-Year Foundation Seminars:

Courses for 2023-2024

 

WDW199H1-F Indigenous Knowledge and Storytelling in Toronto

The land now known as Toronto has a 13,000+ year history of Indigenous presence that is still unfolding. This history is inscribed in the land – it is visible in the geographical features, place names, and contemporary urban form of the city and is represented through stories (oral and written) told by diverse members of Toronto’s Indigenous community. This course engages with stories of Indigenous history and presence in Toronto through a selection of Indigenous literary works about Toronto, Indigenous guest speakers, and a series of experiential Indigenous storytelling tours of significant locations across the city. Students will be introduced to Indigenous worldviews and ways of knowing and will learn why storytelling remains a significant and culturally-appropriate means for keeping and sharing land-based Indigenous Knowledge. Students will gain a deeper appreciation of the city as a traditional Indigenous territory and will reflect on their own relationships and responsibilities within these lands. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Distribution Requirement: Humanities

Breadth Requirement: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)

 

WDW195H1-S From Page to Screen: Reading in the Digital Age

This course explores the practice of reading at the juncture between printed page and digital screen through assembling a digital commonplace book, an annotated personal anthology that will document each student’s intellectual path. Students will learn close reading strategies, multimodal annotation techniques, and various modes of digital engagement with texts. Restricted to first-year students. Not eligible for CR/NCR option.

Distribution Requirement: Humanities

Breadth Requirement: Creative and Cultural Representations (1)